How Express Entry Immigration Program Works

Provinces and territories will also be able to recruit candidates from the Express Entry pool for a portion of the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) in order to meet local labour market needs.

Through Express Entry, people who meet the criteria for one of these programs will be placed into a pool of candidates. The Government of Canada, provincial and territorial governments, and Canadian employers will be able to select people from this pool.

Employers in Canada must first make every effort to try and find a Canadian or permanent resident to fill vacant job opportunities. Eligible employers who cannot find a Canadian or permanent resident for a permanent job will be able to consider candidates from the pool who meet their needs.

Express Entry and the Government of Canada’s Job Bank will let eligible employers in Canada and skilled foreign nationals connect with one another more easily, making integration faster once immigrants arrive in Canada.

Candidates with the highest scores in the pool will be issued an Invitation to Apply (ITA).

Candidates will be awarded points for:

a job offer and/or

a provincial/territorial nomination and/or

skills and experience – factors that contribute to success in Canada.

Understanding the New Point System – Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS)

All Express Entry candidates will be given a score out of 1,200, based on the four parts of the Comprehensive Ranking System formula:

Skills and experience factors

Spouse or common-law partner factors

Skills transferability

Additional points for those with a nomination from a province or territory or a valid job offer

CRS Summary:

A

B

C

D

Total

Core Human Capital (Age/Edu/Lang/Exp)

Spouse Factors

Transferability factors

AE/ PNP

1200

460

40

100

600

Applicants with Spouse or Common Law

500

NA

100

600

Single Applicant

CIC will select the highest ranking candidates from the pool through regular draws (expected every month) and invite them to apply to immigrate as a permanent resident.

Qualified candidates who also have a job offer supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) will get enough points to ensure they are ranked high enough to get an invitation to apply.

Similarly, a nomination by a province or territory, will give a candidate additional points to rank high enough to be invited to apply at the next eligible draw of candidates.

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